National Arson Awareness Week is May 5-11, and the theme this year is Reducing Residential Arson. The goal is to provide all residents with strategies to combat arson in their neighborhoods. The public can be engaged in Arson Awareness Week by implementing neighborhood cleanups along with improving internal and external security for their homes and abandoned properties.

What can I do to protect my home against Arson?

• Illuminate exterior and all entrances to your home. Install motion-activated lights on all sides of the house. These are relatively inexpensive.
• Clear all obstructions. Trim or remove brush that blocks the view of a home from the street.
• Install smoke alarms and fire sprinkler systems. The combination of smoke alarms and home fire sprinklers reduces the likelihood of death from a fire. This is the most effective fire loss prevention and reduction measurement.
• Keep doors and windows locked. A simple locked door could be the deterrent that saves a home from arson.
• Clean your yard. Remove excess piles of leaves or vegetation and clean around your house and garage to remove unused paper, trash, cans of paint or other materials.
• Clean up and secure vacant or abandoned homes. Keep doors and windows locked or boarded up with plywood. Remove any abandoned vehicles. Make sure all utilities are disconnected.

The Washington State Fire Marshal’s Office urges everyone to have a comprehensive fire protection plan that includes smoke alarms, residential sprinklers, and practicing a home fire escape plan.

For more information, including a media kit for the 2013 Arson Awareness Week campaign, please visit http://www.usfa.dhs.gov/aaw/.

The Office of the State Fire Marshal is a Bureau of the Washington State Patrol, providing fire and life safety services to the citizens of Washington State including inspections of state licensed facilities, plan review of school construction projects, licensing of fire sprinkler contractors and pyrotechnic operators, training Washington State’s firefighters, and collecting emergency response data.